The Best Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) Software in 2026
We researched IaaS products using official vendor websites, including pricing pages, plan tables, and product documentation. Rankings focus on the category’s core job, value for money, and verified features such as compute options, storage, networking, and deployment controls. Compare platforms for provisioning and managing cloud infrastructure.
Our top picks
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Top ranked
Amazon EC2#1 of 239.4/10Flexible virtual servers with multiple instance families and purchasing options.
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Runner-up
Azure Virtual Machines#2 of 239.3/10Configurable Linux and Windows VMs with scaling, monitoring, backup, and load balancing on Azure.
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Top-ranked free plan
Google Compute Engine#3 of 239.2/10Flexible Google Cloud VMs with autoscaling, load balancing, and a limited free tier.
Free plan
Advertiser disclosure: iTechGuides is reader-supported. Vendors can pay for top positions in our rankings and for a place on other products' pages, and we may earn a commission when you click some links. Bought places stand at the number bought; this page and our disclosure say so. Paying vendors may get a fuller, more detailed review from our editors, and that review can change their score. How we rank.
The full ranking 23 tools, best first
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Best forTeams needing broad, scalable general-purpose IaaS
Flexible virtual servers with multiple instance families and purchasing options.
9.4/10★★★★★Visit Amazon EC2 -
Best forOrganizations invested in the Azure ecosystem
Configurable Linux and Windows VMs with scaling, monitoring, backup, and load balancing on Azure.
9.3/10★★★★★Visit Azure VMs -
Best forTeams wanting established IaaS with a free plan
Flexible Google Cloud VMs with autoscaling, load balancing, and a limited free tier.
9.2/10★★★★★Visit Google Cloud -
Best forTeams needing flexible compute and billing options
Flexible virtual machines with several billing choices and autoscaling for cloud workloads.
9.1/10★★★★★Visit Alibaba Cloud -
Best forTeams seeking free-tier access and bare metal
Flexible VM and bare metal compute with autoscaling and an Always Free option.
Free plan · 30-day trial Our Oracle Cloud Compute verdict → Visit Oracle CloudFor vendors Sponsor this spot · #5 · $59/mo →9.0/10★★★★☆Visit Oracle Cloud -
Best forTeams running workloads on Huawei Cloud
Configurable cloud VMs with flexible billing and Huawei Cloud service integrations.
8.9/10★★★★☆Visit Huawei Cloud -
Best forTeams needing dedicated and autoscaled VPC servers
A flexible VPC server service for workloads needing profile choice and scaling.
8.8/10★★★★☆Visit IBM Cloud -
Best forTeams wanting IaaS plus managed cloud services
A usage-billed cloud stack spanning compute, storage, networking, Kubernetes, and databases.
8.7/10★★★★☆Visit OVHcloud -
Best forSmall teams seeking affordable Linux VMs
A straightforward Linux VM option with a $4 monthly entry plan and flexible management.
8.6/10★★★★☆Visit DigitalOcean -
Best forTeams wanting managed provisioning and GPU options
Linux-focused cloud compute with managed provisioning, infrastructure-as-code, and GPU options.
8.5/10★★★★☆Visit Akamai Cloud -
Best forTeams wanting broad location choice and simple VM setup
A configurable VM service with deployment across 32 regions and several provisioning options.
8.4/10★★★★☆Visit Vultr -
Best forOrganizations building self-hosted, multi-hypervisor clouds
A self-hosted cloud platform for teams orchestrating infrastructure across hypervisors.
8.3/10★★★★☆Visit CloudStack -
Best forTeams needing flexible compute within Baidu Cloud
A Baidu Cloud IaaS service for teams that need configurable compute and integrated infrastructure.
8.2/10★★★★☆Visit Baidu Cloud -
Best forTeams seeking compute choices in eight regions
Flexible compute choices and scaling tools, suited to teams that can work with ticket support.
8.1/10★★★★☆Visit Exoscale -
Best forOrganizations orchestrating hybrid or self-hosted clouds
A self-hosted cloud platform for managing virtual machines, Kubernetes, and hybrid sites.
8.0/10★★★★☆Visit OpenNebula -
Best forTeams prioritizing flexible sizing and data residency
Metered virtual infrastructure with separate resource sizing and broad regional coverage.
7.9/10★★★★☆Visit CloudSigma -
Best forTeams wanting API tooling and configurable cloud servers
Flexible cloud servers with API tooling and distinct compute and storage plans.
7.8/10★★★★☆Visit UpCloud -
Best forTeams needing varied VM profiles across many regions
A broad VM menu and free egress suit teams prioritizing regional choice over low entry cost.
7.7/10★★★★☆Visit Gcore -
Best forDevelopers seeking low-cost instance experimentation
Low-cost hourly instances for development and workload-specific compute.
7.6/10★★★★☆Visit Scaleway -
Best forWebsite owners needing shared hosting
A shared web host for websites and online shops, not general-purpose IaaS.
6.9/10★★★☆☆Visit Hetzner -
Best forCost-conscious teams needing basic virtual servers
Flexible billing and server configurations, with storage availability constrained.
- Virtual machine instances
- Block storage
6.9/10★★★☆☆Visit Cherry Servers -
Best forOpenStack users needing secret storage, not compute
A self-hosted OpenStack key manager for secret storage, not virtual machine compute.
6.0/10★★★☆☆Visit OpenStack -
Best forYandex Cloud users needing block storage, not compute
A flexible disk service for Yandex Cloud VMs, not a standalone compute offering.
5.9/10★★★☆☆Visit Yandex Cloud
No tools match those filters.
Compare at a glance
| # | Tool | Free plan | Paid from | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amazon EC2 | No | 9.4 | |
| 2 | Azure Virtual Machines | No | 9.3 | |
| 3 | Google Compute Engine | Yes | 9.2 | |
| 4 | Alibaba Cloud Elastic Compute Service (ECS) | No | 9.1 | |
| 5 | Oracle Cloud Compute | Yes | Free | 9.0 |
| 6 | Huawei Cloud Elastic Cloud Server (ECS) | No | 8.9 | |
| 7 | IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC | No | 8.8 | |
| 8 | OVHcloud Public Cloud | No | $6.74/unit/mo | 8.7 |
| 9 | DigitalOcean Droplets | No | $4/mo | 8.6 |
| 10 | Akamai Cloud Compute | No | 8.5 | |
| 11 | Vultr Cloud Compute | 8.4 | ||
| 12 | Apache CloudStack | Yes | Free | 8.3 |
| 13 | Baidu Cloud Compute (BCC) | No | 8.2 | |
| 14 | Exoscale Compute | No | 8.1 | |
| 15 | OpenNebula | Yes | 8.0 | |
| 16 | CloudSigma Cloud Servers | No | 7.9 | |
| 17 | UpCloud Cloud Servers | No | 7.8 | |
| 18 | Gcore Virtual Machines | No | €8.93/mo | 7.7 |
| 19 | Scaleway Instances | No | €0.0006/unit usage-based | 7.6 |
| 20 | Hetzner Web Hosting | No | 6.9 | |
| 21 | Cherry Servers Virtual Servers | No | 6.9 | |
| 22 | OpenStack Barbican | Free | 6.0 | |
| 23 | Yandex Cloud Disks | No | 5.9 |
Head-to-head All 12 comparisons →
- Amazon EC2 vs Huawei Cloud Elastic Cloud Server (ECS)
- Amazon EC2 vs IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
- Amazon EC2 vs OVHcloud Public Cloud
- Azure Virtual Machines vs Huawei Cloud Elastic Cloud Server (ECS)
- Azure Virtual Machines vs IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
- Azure Virtual Machines vs OVHcloud Public Cloud
- Google Compute Engine vs Huawei Cloud Elastic Cloud Server (ECS)
- Google Compute Engine vs IBM Cloud Virtual Servers for VPC
- Google Compute Engine vs OVHcloud Public Cloud
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How we rank infrastructure as a service (IaaS) software
Every tool on this page was researched by iTechGuides Editors from its official website — pricing pages, plan tables and product documentation. We rank on how well each one does this category's core job, what the free or entry plan includes, and where it falls short. Where we have enough verified facts, the score out of 10 is a rubric — job fit, value and how much we could verify — shown with its breakdown on every tool's page; a tool we have not verified enough to score yet shows its rank without a number. Scores are re-checked when a product changes its plans. Read the full editorial policy, or submit a tool we missed.
Reviewed by iTechGuides Editors · Editorial team · Updated Oct 2026
Last updated · How we research and update